Bread of Perfection

The golden loaves glowed on my counter top. The comforting aroma of freshly baked bread saturated my kitchen. I couldn't help but feel a little proud as I stood back from the sweltering oven, hands on my hips, and admired my most recent culinary triumph.

The bread was still hot when I sliced thick slabs off, smothered in butter and raspberry jam. Perfection on my plate.

Before I took my first bite, I heard His voice.

"I am the bread of life." He whispered.

Thoughtfully, I chewed upon sustenance, both physical and spiritual:

John 6:48-51 "I am the bread of life. Your forefathers ate the manna in the desert, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven which a man may eat and not die. I am the living bread that comes down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world."

My forefathers and I are one and the same. So often, I am content to scrape an existence in the arid desert, comfortable with consuming heaps of manna. From my plate of hard, wafer-like morsels, I can barely lift my eyes to the heavens to taste the Living Bread, broken for me. Instead, I focus on finding, striving, inventing any little way that I can make the manna lying at my feet taste sweet. My efforts to satiate my gnawing hunger is in vain, and it isn't long before my hands grasp at those pieces of manna once again. I cling to those hardened crumbs, forgetful of their failure to sustain me. Oh, I am such a manna eater!

The slop of this world clings to my lips in the form of manna, yet the most beautiful invitation is extended to me, to those who echo the footsteps of the Israelite forefathers. If I stop for but a moment from my vain efforts to sweeten my life on my own, the smell of Perfect Risen Bread wafts down from Heaven and envelopes me.

The taste of manna lies heavy and dry within my being, and yet, I hunger for this Bread - this broken Bread that the very crumbs I am unworthy to eat. With each moment I spend breathing in the Holy Sustenance, I experience the Life living within me. Paltry and measly is the plate of manna that I had been "feasting" upon before. Any traces of my desert fare, I wipe away.

Before me, the table is set. With His nail-printed palms spread, the Inviter entreats me to His simple banquet. With those same mangled hands, He breaks the Living Bread: "Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good."

Stomach + Heart = Love

I'm a sucker for Valentine's Day. I totally buy into the notions and myths of chubby little cupid with his bow and arrows, tacky heart decorations, flowers, love letters etc...Since yesterday was our first Valentine's together as a married couple, we wanted to make it a little extra special.

For me, all the loving started last week when J came home with my new beloved can opener and chocolates! On Friday he came home carrying a bouquet of 12 long stem roses...absolutely breath-taking!

With painstaking creative genius, on Saturday afternoon J presented me with this:

I was thoroughly impressed! As an engineer, for J to get all "arts and craftsy" was a big leap out of his comfort zone! (Might I add that he even composed the little poem Even though the seasons change, my love for you remains the same.) I was definitely swept off my feet!

However, I was in a frenzy as to what I should do for J for Valentine's Day. Let's face it - Valentine's Day really isn't a day that was invented for men. Unlike myself, J has not bought into the whims and fancies of lavish bouquets and copious love letters. If I were to give him the same beautiful arrangement of roses that he gave me, I know for a fact that his reaction would not be nearly as satisfying as mine. Instead, the age old saying "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach" led me to the kitchen, where I was sure that a tasty culinary creation would melt J's very heart strings.

I started first off with making Raspberry Crumble Bars:

Raspberry Crumble Bars

3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup shortening
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon cornstarch
4 cups fresh or frozen raspberries

- In a large bowl, combing the flour, 1 cup sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in eggs and extract. Press two-thirds of the mixture into a greased 9x13 baking dish.
- In a large bowl, combine cornstarch and remaining sugar; add berries and gently toss. Spoon over crust. Sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture.
- Bake at 375 for 35-45 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown.

I give these bars two thumbs up! The raspberries keep it fresh and tangy, but the addition of almond extract gives it a rich, buttery flavour that melts in your mouth! Perfect with a cup of strong coffee!

I spent the better half of my day preparing for our meal. Thanks to Taste of Home website, I was able to find delicious Valentine's recipes for two.

We started our meal off with Cranberry Almond Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette:

Cranberry Almond Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette

enough mixed spring salad greens for 2 people
sliced mushrooms
dried cranberries
1 tablespoon chopped onion
slivered almonds
Raspberry Vinaigrette dressing:
1/4 cup of olive oil
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon raspberry preserves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper

This salad was nice and light. I was pleasantly surprised with how the dressing turned out. At frist, I thought that it may have had too much olive oil, but I chilled it for a few hours, and the raspberry flavour seemed to infuse quite nicely with the rest of the ingredients.

Followed by our salad, we had Steaks with Molasses-Glazed Onions, Twice Baked-Baked Potatoes, and mixed veggies.

Steaks with Molasses-Glazed Onions

2 bacon strips, diced
2 beef top sirloin steaks (6 ounces each)
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon pepper, divided
1 large sweet onion, thinly sliced
1 1/2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon molasses

- In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove the bacon; drain the skillet, reserving 1 1/2 teaspoons drippings in the skillet and 1 1/2 teaspoons drippings in a small bowl.
- Sprinkle steaks with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. In the skillet, cook steaks over medium heat for 4-6 minutes on each side, or until meat reaches desired doneness. Remove and keep warm.
- Add onion and reserved drippings to the skillet; saute until tender. Add the vinegar, molasses and remaining salt and pepper; heat through. Serve onion mixture with steaks; sprinkle with bacon.

The topping on the steaks was absolutely divine! The onions tasted almost like caramel, with a hint of spicy tang. I will definitely be making this recipe again!

Twice Baked-Baked Potatoes

2 medium baking potatoes
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup 2% milk
1 bacon strip, cooked and crumbled
1 tablespoon finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon minced chives
1/4 teaspoon salt
dash of pepper
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided

- Bake potatoes at 37 for 1 hour or until tender. When cool enough to handle, cut a thin slice off the top of each potato and discard. Scoop out pulp, leaving a thin shell.
- In a small bowl, mash the pulp with butter. Stir in the milk, bacon, onion, chives, salt, pepper and 1/3 cup cheese. Spoon into potato shells. Top with remaining cheese.
- Place on baking sheet. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes or until cheese is melted.

These potatoes were to die for! Creamy, rich goodness within a crispy shell, baked to cheesy perfection! Yum!

Let's just say J was extremely excited for his meal:

We finished our meal off with Poached Pears with Raspberry Sauce:

Poached Pears with Raspberry Sauce

1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup white wine, or white cranberry juice
2 medium pears, peeled and halved
3 tablespoons seedless raspberry spreadable fruit
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
fresh raspberries to garnish

- In a small saucepan, bring the water, sugar and wine to a boil. Reduce heat; carefully add pears. Cover and simmer for -10 minutes or until tender. Remove pears and reserve cooking liquid.
- In a small bowl, combine spreadable fruit and vanilla. Stir in enough cooking liquid to form a sauce consistency. Cover and refrigerate sauce and pears separately until chilled.
- Remove sauce from the refrigerator 15 minutes before serving. Place two pear halves on each dessert plate; top with sauce. Garnish with raspberries.

This dessert was the perfect end to our meal - sweet and light, with a satisfying hint of vanilla flavouring.

At the end of the night, I think the saying holds true - the stomach, when happily fed, will heartily love. At least for my man it does. Mission accomplished.

Can Opener Catastrophes...(aka Pasta with Hot Sausage Sauce)

Supper for J and I did not happen until approximately 8:30 last night. It was all the fault of the can opener.

I've been needing a new can opener for quite a while now, but somehow, it never reached the list of things to buy. Until yesterday, I had my old one for over 2 years and it had definitely seen better days. The teeth were all rusted, the wheels would hardly turn, the handle got stuck, I would have to hold it at weird angles to actually get it to grip the can, the list goes on and on...

Four o'clock rolled around yesterday afternoon, and like I usually do around that time, I started to make supper. I've found that if I start preparations for supper around 4, by the time J comes home from work, the table is set, and something steaming sumptuously comes from the oven.

The particular recipe I was making last night called for whole peeled tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, and tomato sauce...all from a can. And so began the wrestle with the lousy can opener. 20 minutes later, the first can was mangled, twisted, distorted - crushed tomatoes seeping out of the gashes that the can opener managed to shred through. Every time I managed to turn the handle on the can opener, the can received such a jolt that tomato juice spewed from any opening possible, splattering against my clean white cupboards. Finally, I gave up. I was frustrated. My wrists felt sprained. My kitchen was dirty. And there was no way that supper would be ready by the time J came home.

Instead, I called J and vented my frustrations about the "stupid" can opener, the dirty kitchen, and the food that was inevitably never going to reach the table, much less our bellies! He promised to bring home a new can opener. (Which he did - might I add that it is the "Cadillac" of all can openers! Bright red, Kitchenaide, the best one in the whole store!)

It wasn't until close to 7 that J came home, can opener in hand...as well as a box of early Valentines Day chocolates (might I add that he is the "Cadillac" of all husbands out there?!). After unsealing the remaining cans and a not so ceremonious disposal of the old can opener, supper was ready...a mere hour and a half later. Despite everything, the meal was absolutely delicious!

So, here's to great food...and even greater can openers!

Pasta with Hot Sausage Sauce


1 pound hot Italian sausage
2/3 cup red onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced capers
1 (28 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, mashed, liquid reserved
1 (14.5 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1/2 cup red wine
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
salt to taste
1 (16 ounce) package dry ziti pasta (I used penne)
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese

• In a skillet over medium heat, cook the sausage until evenly brown.
• Mix the red onion, garlic, and capers into the skillet, and cook until onion is tender. Mix in the mashed whole tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and red wine. Season with basil, parsley, oregano, red pepper, black pepper, and salt. Bring to a boil, and reduce heat to low. Simmer 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thickened.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Place the ziti (or whatever kind of pasta you choose!) in the pot, cook 10 minutes, until al dente and drain.
• Serve the sauce mixture over the cooked pasta. Top with Romano cheese.

The Auntie's Cookbook

There's something about using recipes that have been passed down through the generations...

This afternoon, I had a case of some serious culinary mind freeze. I had 4 chicken breasts thawing...and I was pouring over my myriads of cookbooks. After a while, all the recipes started to look the same, each of them claiming their own unique flavours, simmered to perfection for an explosion of savoury delight. One recipe wanted me to use cream of chicken soup, another cream cheese, another sour cream, another soy sauce...the list of endless ingredients went on...and on...and on.

J ended up calling me to let me know that he would be home from work early tonight, and STILL those four chicken breasts remained on their plate, shining in all their raw, pink glory. And nothing had yet triggered my palatable senses.

With only an hour before J would be home, I turned to an old stand-by: The Fabulous Frugal Fast Favourite Foods of The Girls from Gorrie...since that's too much of a mouthful, I fondly call it "The Auntie's Cookbook." This huge 3 ringed binder full of recipes is a family heirloom of sorts. My grandma, my mom and my four aunts collaborated this book of all their tried and true recipes a few years back to pass down to their grandchildren/children/nieces and nephews once we all passed the threshold of adulthood. Basically, these recipes were to keep us from eating take-out when we were poor students or newly married.

One of my favourite parts of this eclectic medley of recipes is the personal notes each contributor has left beside their recipes. For example, my mom posted a recipe called "Poor Man's Dinner," which she ironically wrote beside, "Delicious! With million dollar taste!" Or the "Strawberry Pie" recipe that apparently was "from the day of Mom's cancer surgery." (Although I'm not quite sure why such a morbid notation was made...) Needless to say, there are times when I will just plop down on the couch, open up The Auntie's Cookbook, and feel like they're right in the room with me...all talking at once, all sharing their stories, all in my face, but all desiring to put good food in my belly. And, it's comforting.

I didn't have time to sit and be sentimental this afternoon, however, and luckily enough, I turned to page 5 and found: "Barbecue Chicken," submitted by Mum. While the title of the recipe sounds completely lackluster (at least compared to the Lemon-Basil-Splash-of-Balsamic-Sprinkled-with-Parmesan Chicken recipes I had be looking at earlier), the fact that there were only 5 ingredients spoke volumes as the clock quickly ticked away.

BARBECUE CHICKEN

21/2 - 3 lbs cut up chicken
1 envelope onion soup mix
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup water

Place a large sheet of aluminum foil onto a shallow baking pan. Foil should overlap the pan on all sides. Arrange chicken pieces, single layer. Combine the rest and pour evenly over chicken. Cover and seal edges. Bake at 375 for 50 min. Uncover for the last 10-15 minutes.

Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures to show you of how it turned out, but believe me when I say that it's a simmering, spicy conglomeration of goodness. And oh so easy. So, thanks, Mum - it's always fun to cook with you in the kitchen!